Thursday, November 27, 2008

Tracy show us she has the same challenges as the rest of us

Tracy shows in her latest video, link attached, that she is not perfect, and has design issues just like the rest of us- she is living with several pets and four boys- and her design is a work in progress- much like you and me- the dogs like to sleep in the boys bathroom, so she is modifying it for them. The dogs chewed a hole in the settee- which is not surprising (I think) for a large dog like a Newfoundland to do. It's how you handle life's challenges that make life worth living. Thank you Tracy, for making me smile this morning. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, no matter how bad you may perceive things to be, there is always a lot to be grateful for. :) XO J.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

To UGG or not to UGG


I have been avoiding buying a pair of "real" Ugg boots for over two years. There is something about spending over $100 on a pair of not so attractive boots that gives me pause. I have bought the Target knock offs, a pair of "unknown" knockoffs from my FAVE discount retailer TJ MAXX- but, I have not brought myself to buy the real thing.

Now that my knockoffs are failing, one boot has a hole in the bottom, the other has the inside "fur" coming loose, I feel that my money would be better spent on the real deal. I love the idea of sticking my barefoot into warm boots in the dead of winter. There is something rebellious about it- like, take that Winter- NO Socks!

I have been studying the difference between the EMU Australia boots and the Ugg Australia boots- I can't find any huge differences except the price of the EMUs are lower and that the EMUs have as slightly rounded toe sole and heel sole. In this respect I think the Uggs are are better looking. Anyone have any thoughts on the difference between the two? I am now addicted to wearing my boots without socks and can't bear to go another winter without a pair of "Ugg like" boots! :)

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

"Whatever Martha" with Alexis and Jennifer

My sides ache from laughing...I have been watching clips of "Whatever Martha" on YouTube this afternoon. I discovered the show on FLN and have become an avid follower of the show. They have a radio show on Sirius radio which I do not have, so I haven't been able to hear it, but I bet it's worth the radio subscription..here's why....
As I said before my sides were splitting watching a clip of the "girls" watching a clip of one of Martha's old shows where she demonstrates how to go about making Smores. You and I know that Smores are a yummy campfire treat that is made from skewering a marshmallow onto a twig and roasted over an open fire, then unceremoniously smashed onto a Graham cracker with melting chocolate in between. It's a fun, casual and messy affair. That is the beauty of a Smore.
Well, not in Martha's world. She sets up her supplies with all the usual suspects, the chocolate squares, the crackers, marshmallows, etc, with a few exceptions. She has a Swiss army knife and battery operated hand drill? What is she going to do with the drill? Jennifer asks this question and Alexis rolls her eyes back in her head and in a dry humor voice (what I love about Alexis) she says..."she's going to complicate the smore process...) boy, does she ever!! Martha proceeds to pull out a bunch of perfectly sized twigs and shows the audience how to "whittle" a point onto the twig using the swiss army knife. Whittle a point? Are the marshmallow roasting twigs also used as some sort of Mideavel hunting weapon? Why would you need a sharp point to skewer a marshmallow? This is the humor of it all. The girls ask these logical questions while viewing the clip. Next, Martha takes some sort of small wood block and starts drilling the twig to the block?????? She starts going off on some tangent about making some sort of campfire tool- why do you need this? Why does anyone need this? Is smore making done so often and taken so seriously that you need actual tools to do it properly? Alexis and Jennifer show the humor in all of this in an fun, refreshing and good humored way. Now we know that no one can really live like Martha Stewart. This is coming straight from the apple near the tree :) J

Monday, September 29, 2008

Origins of language derived from the Showtime Series "Weeds"




OK-- I am once again going to bring up something that can be perceived as controversial. No, this time it's not about politics-- My new obsession since being unemployed is catching up on the last season of "Weeds". I know that the overall premise of the show is ridiculous; an upper middle class housewife takes on the life of pot dealer in order to raise her two sons after the sudden death of her husband.

I love the cast, Mary-Louise Parker and Elizabeth Perkins are two of my all time favorite actresses. Kevin Nealon is also in this series and he is hilarious as well- The shows writers are AMAZING as the episodes are so clever and truly funny. Anyway, the reason I am tying this to language is that in recent episodes Nancy and her kids flee Agrestic to escape the burning town and are temporarily homeless. Nancy makes the decision to go see "bubbe"...her dead husband's grandmother. Now, Nancy's husband Judah's family is Jewish and Bubbe always said that Judah marring out of his religion would kill her. Incidentally, Judah's brother Andy, takes over the Botwin family as a paternal figure. Andy takes them into see Bubbe, and to their dismay, they find her in the living room on a respirator. Bubbes's son Lenny, (Nancy's father-in law--Andy's father) is taking care of Bubbe and is a compulsive gambler and ner-do well. Bubbe finally utters a word to the family as they are arguing non-stop in Yiddish--" Kill Me"". ...Botwin boys make the decision to honor Bubbe's request, but only if Nancy pulls the plug....the irony again is that Bubbe always said that Judah's marring Nancy aka "not Francie" (the woman they believe he SHOULD of married) would kill her....and she does.....
The whole Yiddish thing prompted me to research Yiddish words and I found a whole list of hilarity....I don't believe that there is any other language as descriptive as Yiddish--I found this list: (link below)

There are forty words on the Yiddish handbook- words you should know- but, the most obvious ones are, chutzpah, spiel and schlep, but if you read the list you will find more descriptive words and their actual meanings. I've added a link to the page below. Let me know if you find these words as funny as I do, and if you had the benefit of growing up with a Jewish grandmother, perhaps the words may find a soft spot in your heart as well. http://www.dailywritingtips.com/the-yiddish-handbook-40-words-you-should-know/
http://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/weeds/photos/191882/2

Friday, September 26, 2008

Tracy Porter Link Added


I added a link to Tracy Porter's blog to my site. I adore Tracy, her ideas, her innovation, her joie de vivre-- is all very inspiring! If you are unfamiliar with her work, please visit her site, I have posted the link below.

She shares a lot on her blog of how she comes up with design ideas and executes them. She is mom of 4 boys and runs a successful business with her husband and family. As she would say--Be Inspired!

I have added a picture of my son, Will to this post because,1) I just learned how to use this feature (honestly) and 2) I think that it shows the joy and innocence of simple everyday life!